DRAGONS' GAME | JENLISA

Chapter 18

Our plan was to go back to the Davana Lake and look for the Scarlet Dragon again, expecting that she would want to know what happened. If she hadn't known it already of course. After a whole day of marching we decided to rest: we lit a small fire in the forest and sat next to each other, still reminiscing the eventful day that we had just experienced.

"Lisa, I..." I began to speak. "I didn't thank you properly for saving my life back there-"

"You saved my life many times, no need to thank me." she said reassuringly.

"But you risked your own life, I mean what you did was crazy, you could have fallen down with me-"

"But I didn't."

Hearing how modest she was made me admire her even more. I was watching her innocent-looking face and, driven by a sudden impulse, I kissed her on the cheek. It was just a simple peck, but it expressed all the emotions that were churning inside me at the moment. Admiration, gratitude... and maybe something more.

"I'm sure you'd do the same for me, Ninivai." Lisa simply said.

"I hope I would."

With our gazes locked on the dancing flames, we sat in silence. I was sure both of us were thinking about the same issue, but neither of us wanted to speak about it first. Finally the tension inside me became so unbearable that I decided to ask:

"Fate brought us two together to accomplish a mission... so now that our quest is over..." my voice broke a little. "What will happen with us?"

She glanced at me, her eyes suddenly sad.

"Are you saying that we should each go our own way?"

"No, I'm just asking-"

"Maybe you're right, we did what we were supposed to do and maybe there's nothing that connects us anymore." I noticed how her lip trembled as she said these words.

Another long silence. Maybe we were both too proud to admit that apart from our bond created by fate, there was another, maybe even stronger. I bit my lip. "Is this is really the end?" I thought and it made me unbelievably upset. No, I can't let it happen. I glanced at her and remembered how she was always the one who was brave about her feelings... Yes Jennie, now it's your turn to be courageous. Swallow your pride and tell her, just confess to her what you feel.

"Lisa?"

She turned her dispirited gaze towards me.

"I don't want us to separate." I said. No, that's not enough, I must tell her what I truly feel. "What I want to say is that..." I continued bravely. "You've become my friend, no, much more than a friend... the most important person in the world for me. And I know it will sound crazy because we only met a few days ago but... I don't want to lose you. I can't imagine my life without you."

All the tension disappeared from Lisa's face as she moved towards me, looked me in the eyes, grazed my cheek with her finger and whispered:

"I was hoping you'd say that. Because that's exactly how I feel." A moment later our lips touched shyly, there was nothing aggressive in it like what happened during our first kiss, our mouths were moving in slow motion, tasting each other, relishing every single second. It was the first time in my life that I had such deep, meaningful connection with someone. Our every move, every passionate glance, every delicate touch was loaded with emotions and it made me feel wonderful. The physical aspect of it was of course pleasant too, but it was our emotional bond that made me elated in a way that I hadn't ever experienced before. The way Lisa touched my hair, my face, my arms... It was both comfortable and exciting, peaceful and electrifying, intimate and intriguing.

That night was not about sex, we didn't go beyond touching and kissing. It was about showing how we cared for each other, expressing our feelings without words, transmitting and receiving them with our bodies. The pure bonding of souls and minds. I don't even know how long it lasted because I lost the track of time. With our hearts filled with happiness, we finally fell asleep, embraced, with blissful smiles on our faces as if we were dreaming about something extraordinarily marvelous.